


Firefish

by fallsintograce



Series: Under This Painted Ocean [4]
Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Royalty, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/F, F/M, Happy Ending, Lights, M rating will kick in down the line, M/M, Magic, Marine biologist Victor, Merjellyfish Yuuri, Mermaids & Other Sea Creatures, Mermen & Mermaids, Mermen Can Be Scary, Multi, Royal Katsuki Family, Slow Burn, Too many people singing too many Disney songs, Underwater Sexy Times, Yuuri is royalty, confident Yuuri Katsuki, more tags to be added later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-02
Updated: 2018-05-25
Packaged: 2019-02-25 23:30:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,494
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13223520
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fallsintograce/pseuds/fallsintograce
Summary: For the longest time, there were some lights blinking off in the ocean. Some thought it was an alien. Others thought it was a giant fish that they called the Firefish. Everyone was curious about it and the majority were afraid of it. So when Victor Nikiforov decides to investigate where those lights are coming from, he's surprised that they didn't come a giant fish. They came from a half-man, half-jellyfish by the name of Yuuri, the prince of the ocean. He also happens to be Victor's soulmate.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Bassymphonies](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bassymphonies/gifts).



> Happy New Year, YOI friends! 
> 
> This is a gift for two people. The first is for Isabella/Bass/Katsuki_Skates for our secret santa over at discord. (I know it's a WIP to go with my other WIPs but I swear I will end them all soon. I have a plan for everything even if it seems like I don't). The second gift is for @artofmarylarson who kinda sorta gave me the idea and I ran with it. I'm attempting to make your dreams come true! It's un-betaed cause I wanted to get it in for the new year. 
> 
> Can I mash up merman AU, soulmate AU, and royalty AU in one? Why, yes. Yes, I can. Do I know what I'm doing? I think so. It will get interesting soon.
> 
> ETA: Added a few bits to the chapter so it was slightly updated.

It all started with the blinking lights in the water. They were deep in the water and many people wanted to get close enough to them. No one could tell what they were because the lights went out if anyone looked in their direction. Everyone had their theories about what they could be. Some suspected it was a new kind of fish or electric eel. Others suspected it was the blinking lights of an abandoned watercraft. The biggest conspiracy theorists believed that aliens were living down here. However, no one had any proof of where those lights were coming from. 

The lights moved in a strange pattern that no one could tell if it was one creature or multiple smaller creatures in the water. A few thought it was a giant fish that ate people if they got close enough to it. They called the firefish because the lights reminded them of flames in the water. No scientist out there who could tell what the firefish truly was. Then there were the few conspiracy theorists who thought the lights were someone’s soulmate calling out to them. No one listened to them as much as it was just a silly theory.

Soulmates were a thing, of course, but it had nothing to do with lights. Everyone had been born with a mark on their body in the shape of something. Usually, that mark was on their hands but a few had marks on their feet, head, back of necks, and backs too. Whoever had matching marks were soulmates. They had to be the exact size with every detail matching. So it didn’t make sense for the firefish to have a soulmate. Only people had them or that was what they had been told. 

Victor Nikiforov was one of those people who was desperate to find out what the lights were. He heard all the stories from other scientists and divers. A few times, he had seen those lights in the distance. Like everyone else he was curious about them. Tonight was the first night in ages that he felt like taking a dive and swimming towards them. He could sneak up on them easier that way and maybe get a better look. More importantly, he was going to do it on his own. If there were too many people around, the lights would go out. He figured that the best thing to do was approach it alone. 

“Are we there yet?” Yuri Plisetsky, one of his former rinkmates, asked as the boat came to a stop. Unlike Victor, he didn’t have much interest in the ocean. He was along for the ride because he was bored. Of course, he told Victor the only reason he was coming along was because he wanted to Victor get eaten by a shark. That wasn’t going to happen. Victor was friends with all the sharks and loved to play with them. 

Victor smiled at him. “We’re here. This was the last time anyone saw the lights. The other sightings were also close by.” 

“Great.” Yuri rolled his eyes. “Are you sure about that? What if it moved away?”

“Well, that’s why I’m going after it. I’m following it. No matter how far it goes, I’m going to go after it. This is a big ocean but I have the time.” He murmured. “Maybe I’ll find my soulmate…”

“Give me a break! You think your soulmate is in the water?!”

“They could be. I haven’t found them on land. Maybe they are in the sea.” He shrugged. "I know you think I'm crazy but I believe that they were there. I get a funny feeling when I'm close to the sea. I think it's calling me." 

"Really? The sea is calling you?"

"It is. I think my soulmate isn't on the land but in the sea." 

"Whatever."

It was unbelievable. It wasn't the idea of a soulmate that annoyed Yuri. In fact, he had one himself and he had yet to find them. It was the fact that Victor thought his soulmate was in the ocean. That couldn't be real. No one had sea creatures for soulmates but Victor truly believed it. The entire trip, he stared down at his right wrist where that strange mark was. A soulmate mark. Most people thought of it as a birthmark in the shape of a snowflake. For years, he went looking for someone who had that exact mark on their left wrist. The person with that mark would be his soulmate for life. However, there was no one out here who had this same marking. He touched it often but it didn’t feel like anything. The only reason for that was because his soulmate wasn’t close by. People had all kinds of marks on their wrists but no one had the matching snowflake. As crazy as it sounded, he was certain that his soulmate was in the ocean. 

Yuri just sighed as he watched Victor get ready to plunge into those cold waters. He was more or less ready with all his equipment and cameras. It was hard to believe that this was the same guy who, only a few years ago, was on the ice and skating in front of audiences around the world. If he tried, he could probably get back on it and be that champion skater everyone knew and loved. Even Yuri looked up to him back then but time had taken them both down different paths. 

The snowflake mark was what led him to his first career. Ever since someone noticed it, they thought that he was meant to be with someone or something to deal with ice. He seemed destined for a career on the ice. When Victor was younger, he was a figure skater and everyone wanted to be just like him. He had dreams of going to the Olympics and winning every international competition out there. He was well on his way of making that dream come true. As the years passed by, he got stronger and better. People were in love with him and he was so sure that he would stay on top of podiums forever.

Then came that one night when he got sick. Prior to that, he was in second place after the short program. It wasn’t his best performance due to how ill he felt. Yet he was sure he could pull off a win in the free program. He had flu-like symptoms right before the competition and his coach, Yakov, insisted that he sit this one out. He wasn’t well enough to perform so it would be wise to withdraw and try again another year. But Victor didn’t want to wait. He was so sure that he would be able to perform. After all, he only felt hot. He still was alert enough to perform. He was certain that he could keep it together long enough and at least finish his program. 

Within the first few minutes, the program was a disaster. Not only did Victor fall, he fell hard and injured himself badly. He managed to finish his routine but ended up fainting on the ice in the end. The whole world was stunned to see him collapse like that and many people feared that he had died. It turned out that he was sick and needed medical attention but he would be fine. When he started to feel better, Yakov did scold him for not listening to him even though he was glad to see that he was alive. That moment didn’t do anything for Victor’s career though. In addition to the illness, he had sprained his ankle and the season was over for him. Everyone was certain he could bounce back but he didn’t want to. It felt like this wasn’t what he was meant to do. Young as he was, he didn’t think he could go back. Despite what others told him, he decided that his time on the ice was over. If he went back, he would go back when he was older. 

Victor was depressed at first. Up until now, all he had ever known was the ice and now that had been taken from him. His time in the spotlight was over and now younger and more talented skaters had taken his place. Everyone tried to get him to go back but his heart was no longer into it. Instead, he was lost and had no idea what to do next. He didn’t know who he was anymore. He walked around towns, trying to find a new path. He had to have one or he would fade out. A part of him wanted to focus more on school. He knew that he would find that new dream over there.

First, he saw that TV program about manta rays. He had been lying in bed when he turned to that nature channel and saw those gorgeous manta rays swimming around in the blue waters. They flapped around like they were birds and had such grace about them. The narrator was talking about them but Victor’s eyes were focused on how beautiful the rays were. He didn’t know what the program was actually talking about but he didn’t care. There was something very calming about the ocean and the creatures in it. They were just too sweet and they made him happy. It wasn’t just the manta rays either. All the creatures in the ocean were wonderful; jellyfish, crabs, eels, sharks, whales...they were all amazing. He wanted to get close to all of them and see them right in their home. 

It didn’t really hit him until one day he was walking around the beach. It was cool night and the waves were rolling in and out. He had taken off his shoes and was walking with Makkachin when it hit him. He stared at the water and suddenly felt revived again. It was so calm and it seemed to call out to him. For the first time in his life, he was feeling happy. He found himself smiling and taking in the ocean breeze. The feeling of sand between his toes and the water rolling around him had given him a new idea. Then he could see a light out in the distance, thinking it was a lighthouse. It was the sign he needed. He knew what he was meant to do. 

The ocean was just ice that had been melted and held many wonders underneath. Maybe his time on the ice was over but that didn’t mean his life was. This opened a brand new door for him and all it required was a lot of hard work and concentration with a little bit of determination. Despite what Yakov and his family said to him, he went back to school and set off on his new dream. He wanted to study everything he could about the ocean and make new discoveries. He was no longer Victor Nikiforov, the figure skater who could have been a legend. Now he was Dr. Victor Nikiforov, well-known marine biologist and explorer of the ocean. 

Some people still had doubts about this, namely his former coach, Yakov, and his former rink mates. They were happy to see that he was back to his old self but they weren’t sure about the new career change. He went to see him a few times and would eye the collection of strange junk on Victor’s shelves and desk. They were a few shells and seaweed there but some things were odd such as the whale vomit and manatee poop he kept. There was no reason have these around but there they were. 

“I know that skaters don’t have a long career but you went from being a legend on the ice to chasing things in water.” Yakov pointed out, trying to ignore them crap on Victor’s desk. “It’s good that you found something new. I’m just worried that maybe...you may end up disappointed.”

“Disappointed by what, Yakov? The ocean is vast and big. There are so many parts that no one has explored yet. I’m going to find everything in every corner of the ocean!” 

It was a big dream but Yakov didn’t want to stand in the way of it. He knew he couldn’t. Whenever he went to visit Victor in the lab, he could hear his former student humming “Part of Your World” from The Little Mermaid. He didn’t even know that Victor knew what that movie was, let alone the songs from it. When he confronted him about it, he was greeted by Victor singing and showing off something strange in a jar.

“Look at this stuff! Isn’t it neat?” He sang, showing Yakov something that looked like seaweed.

“No.” Yakov replied, already tired of these shenanigans. “I respect your decision to take on a new profession, Vitya. I know you care a lot about this but did you have to sing?”

“What’s wrong with singing?”

“Well, for starters, you can’t sing. Secondly, I don’t know what you have in that jar but put it away before you break it.” 

“Oh, Yakov, don’t be so mean to Jerry.”

“Jerry?!” Yakov shook his head. “Well, it’s a good thing you are the best at what you do. I am truly proud of you and your work. I just don’t understand why you needed to name seaweed but if it makes you happy...I will support you. Just like always.”

He wasn’t the only one who was supportive. Former rink mates Mila Babicheva and Georgi Popovich also came to visit him from time to time. They were confused as to why Victor sang Disney songs and had names for everything in the jars but they let him be. It was good to see that he had found a new purpose in life.

“You have so many pictures of sea creatures.” Mila had noted. It was true. Around Victor’s desk were photographs of sea urchins, sea turtles, starfish, sea lions, octopuses, sea slugs, sharks, dolphins, manatees, and all kinds of fish. The only land creatures she saw were photographs of Makkachin. All that told her the story of Victor’s life.

“Aren’t they beautiful?” Victor asked.

“Very beautiful. However, most people usually put photos of their lovers, children, and spouses up here. Putting up your dog’s photos are fine. However, putting up this photo...doesn’t it strike you as odd?” Georgi showed him a picture of some urchin inside of a jar. It had the name ‘Tom’ written on tape. “Did you need to take a picture of this?”

“Yes! Tom was looking very nice that day.”

“Tom? You gave it a name?”

“Why can’t he have a name?” 

They had all given up trying to make sense of this. He could name all these things and sing as much as he wanted. That was just one side to Victor. For all his goofiness and extra behavior, he had a serious side to him. It was a side very few people got to see. As a result, it led to multiple rumors about him. They thought he was wasting his time and he needed to go back to the ice. One bad performance didn’t mean the end of his life. He could return and show them how good he truly was. He could bounce back yet he opted not to. People had many thoughts about him and some people very jealous.

“It’s because he’s pretty.” They would say. “Either that or it’s because he used to be famous. There is no other way he’d be working with us. He’s lucky he’s got those good looks. He has women and men falling all over him.” 

Victor was handsome indeed but that wasn’t the reason he had gotten this job. He was well-respected and incredibly intelligent. Despite the fact that he might have looked and acted flighty around people, he was anything but. He knew exactly what he was doing and what he was talking about. For years, he had made discoveries in the sea and he had quite a reputation. Sometimes, he wondered what it would have been like had he continued to figure skate. Maybe if he had taken that fall, he would have gone on to win more medals. However, a figure skater’s career lasted for a short time. Once he had retired, he would have no idea where to go or what to do. 

Now here he was, chasing after some lights in the water. Not only that, he suspected his soulmate might be down there. That snowflake mark on his wrist belonged to someone out there and that someone wasn’t on land. He tugged on his wetsuit and then took a look into the waters, sensing something below them. A gorgeous, almost twenty-nine year old stared back at him with deep blue eyes and a little bit of fear in his stomach. He loved the ocean but there were still parts of it that scared him. Going with other people wasn’t bad. Going off into alone was a lot more frightening. The lights didn’t seem harmful from a distance. At the same time, he truly had no idea what they were. 

Yuri didn’t work here but he hung around the area because his grandfather lived nearby. As a result, he would also hang around Victor whenever he had a free moment. He would always say it was because he was bored and had nothing better to do. He would act like he had no interest in the ocean and the things around it. In secret, he did enjoy it and was always excited to hear about the new things that were being found. Whenever Victor showed him something new, he would act like he didn’t care but would still listen to everything Victor said. 

“You’re wasting your time.” Yuri told him. “Watch as it turns out to be some fish.”

Victor was used to Yuri’s manner of speaking. He always liked to pretend that he hated everything around him. He was in that phase where he wasn’t a child yet he wasn’t an adult either. He thought that everything he said was the only thing that mattered. 

“I’m only interested if those blinking lights turn out to be aliens. If it’s some stupid glowing fish, I don’t care.” 

The lights were blinking around one area in particular and many people suspected that it could either be eels or jellyfish. A few were even sure it was some new kind of fish that glowed. They had dubbed it the ‘firefish’ because it reminded them of ‘fireflies’. They danced around in the water but no one could get close enough to see what those lights were. As soon as someone tried, the lights went out and whatever creature they belonged to disappeared into the dark waters. They tried to chase it but to no avail. 

Victor had seen the lights a few times as well and had tried to get close to them. The moment he got in the water, they went away. He couldn’t figure out what direction they had gone in and the movement of the water didn’t help. It was like they were blinking one minute and out the next. For three days, he had tried to chase and all three days, he came back with no results. Most people would have felt discouraged by now but not him. If anything, it made him more excited to go after the lights.

“What will you do if you catch it? It belongs in the ocean. You cannot take it from its home.”

“I know that. I don’t plan to hurt it. I just want to know what it is.” Victor assured him. “The moment I find out, I will leave it alone.”

“Yeah, right.” Yuri overheard that and rolled his eyes. “You want to know everything about it. You’re going to stalk that thing and annoy it.”

“Well, it’s true I want to know everything but I don’t want to scare it. I’ll be very gentle. You’ve seen me with other sea creatures. Have I ever bothered them?”

Yuri couldn’t recall a time when Victor had bothered anything in the ocean. If anything, he cared for all the creatures in the sea. Even the ones he observed, he was careful with them. He thought about Jerry sitting on the shelf and wondered what else lay down there. The fish that he saw were beautiful but none of them glowed in the dark water. Not only that, he could identify all the fish he came across. What he needed to do was capture one of these glowing creatures. 

“I thought you didn’t want to harm them.” Yuri pointed out. “You wanted to leave it alone. Catching it would cause harm.”

“I do but I need to know what it is first. Every time I get close, it goes away. If I capture it, then I’ll know what it is. Once I know for a fact, I will let it go.”

“Sure. You probably want to put it in one of your stupid jars.”

“Ah, Yuri, you wouldn’t be able to understand how important this is to me. You have no idea what really lies in those waters.”

“No, I don’t but it’s probably more fish. What’s so exciting about them anyway? Big deal, there’s a fish that glows in the dark. If it did something cool, then I’ll care.” 

Victor decided not to try and explain why this was so important. Even if the lights did end up being a fish, it was still a big discovery. He did realize going down there in the sub probably wasn’t a good idea. When the sub got close to the lights, they went away. The sub was large and visible so perhaps he needed to get close on his own. Maybe if he got close enough, the lights would stay. Then he could figure out what it was. 

That was his plan tonight and now Yuri was watching him get ready. Even though he was acting like he didn’t care, he was secretly hoping things would be all right. He did like Victor and he was fascinated by everything he did. He also worried about him whenever he went too deep and too far. As great as Victor was, he was also human. The ocean had far too many dangers in it. 

“Hey!” He called out to Victor before he dove in. There were a million things he wanted to say but he could only muster one up thing. “Watch your back, okay?”

Victor was confused by this but nodded. “Okay. Okay, I’ll be careful.”

With that, he dove into the water and Yuri watched until he was gone. He had promised to stay out here until Victor came back. It was only supposed to be for an hour but he knew that it would take a little longer. If Victor found out where those lights were coming from, he wasn’t about to let them go. He would take plenty of photographs and show them off when he got a chance. He would be researching that creature for days. If he was lucky, he probably collect its poop in a jar. He already had enough poop samples in his office. Another one wouldn’t hurt him. It would just look weird on his shelf. It would be even weirder if he started singing to it. 

_Well, I hope you find what you’re looking for._ He thought. _And you hope you don’t end up dead because of it._

In the water, Victor had seen those lights again in the distance. At first, he thought he had been imaging them in those dark waters but there they were. They were blinking like they were lights on a UFO. Was Yuri right about all this? Were his lights really alien creature? If that was the case, he was both excited and terrified by it. 

_If it is an alien, then I’d be the first person to see it. Then what do I do? I can’t catch it like this. I don’t want to scare it but I want to observe it. How can I do that? Do I come down here all the time or is there another way? On the other side, what if it hurts me? What will happen then?_

He was torn now. He didn’t want to keep coming down for it would exhaust him and he’d get behind on his other work. He also didn’t want to hurt this creature. People already thought he was crazy with his jars of weird things. Some of them called him cruel. They didn’t get how important all of this was to him. 

The lights kept blinking as they were calling to him. They wanted him to get closer and see them. The only way he could keep it in one place was by catching it. He didn’t have a net on him now but maybe he could get a photograph of this creature. It may not have been the real thing but it would be proof that an alien did exist. If not, then it was proof of something strange. The next time he got close to the lights, he would be ready to capture it long enough to study it. 

He swam closer to the lights as they started to fade out. He had to move fast enough or they would go away again. They were very faint but still there. _No, no, don’t go out yet! I need to know what you are!_

The closer he got, the dimmer the lights got. This creature, whatever it was, had the ability to do this. He squinted, trying to get a better look through the dark waves, could see the blue body of this creature. Its tail was not that of an ordinary fish but it looked more like a jellyfish. Was that what he was looking at? Did he find a brand new kind of jellyfish? If that was the case, this was big news. Everyone would want to see it. 

_Maybe I can’t catch it with my hands but a photograph for now won’t hurt._ He decided. That would be good enough for now. He could show off the pictures to everyone and they would be impressed. Maybe next time, people would want to come along and see these lights. 

The glowing lights were dancing now so he got a little closer and hid behind a rock. This jellyfish was like a ballerina with the way it was moving. The movement was so fluid like the waves. Victor felt short of breath at that moment and wanted to get up for some fresh air. However, he didn’t want to stop staring at it. It was so gorgeous that he couldn’t keep his eyes away from it. He had his camera ready to get that picture but he needed to get closer. A clear shot would prove to everyone that he wasn’t crazy. He would have the proof he wanted to show that these lights were real. They existed and they belonged to something. 

He inched closer, trying to stay as quiet as possible. The more he saw, the bigger that jellyfish looked. It wasn’t the tiny ones that he had been seeing in the past. No, this jellyfish was almost the size of a human being. Now his excitement was turning to fear. If this fish was bigger than him, who knew what it was capable of? It could hurt him if he wasn’t careful or he spooked it.

Slowly, he looked up to see the jellyfish’s face. Then it hit him that it had a face. It had a nose, mouth, cheeks, chin, and eyes just like any person did. More than anything, he was staring into brown eyes. They were deepest, sweetest brown eyes on anyone and this creature, whatever it was, had a strong presence about it. Half-human and half-jellyfish. Something like this couldn’t be seen everywhere. The creature moved closer to him and held out its hand. It had five fingers just like Victor did, only these fingers had sharp nails that could rip him to pieces. Slowly, Victor reached out and touched the creature’s hand till their palms were pressed against each other. This mer-jellyfish felt so cold against him but he didn’t care. 

That was when he caught the sight of the mark on this creature’s wrist. An identical snowflake, brown but visible, was on its left wrist. Every point, every corner of that snowflake was just like the one he had. The burning he never felt before was there now. 

Victor had found his soulmate.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little bit more...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Had to write a little more of this one before I left for my trip. I wanted to update it first. While nothing big happens here, we do move a little further along. Just a tad bit more before the plot kicks in. Forgive me for any errors, this is un-betaed. I'll fix anything wrong in the morning. I'll try to update while I'm away but we'll see. Thank you for sticking around!

The beautiful half-man, half-jellyfish stared at Victor like he had been caught in the headlights of a car. He could tell that the creature wanted to flee but couldn’t. He was frozen in fear and had no idea what to do next. His face said everything; he was scared and he didn’t want to stay. He wanted to hide somewhere because he didn’t know what the human would do. All he knew was that he had been caught. 

Victor, on the other hand, was bursting with excitement on the inside. He felt relieved that he knew what these lights were and wanted to learn more about the beautiful creature. However, before he had a chance to react, it turned away from him and tried to swim further down. He looked too scared to interact with Victor any longer. He didn’t know what Victor was going to do to him so he wanted to hide. 

_No, don’t go! You can't go now! Come back!_ Victor tried to motion to the creature and reached out for it. To his shock, he managed to grab his wrist and keep a tight grip on it. The hand felt like a normal human hand only it was cold instead of warm. He probably didn't warm blood coursing through his veins so his body wasn't completely like a human. The creature looked down and tried to pull himself out. He saw the mark on Victor’s hand and stared longer. It was burning now. He knew what it meant when the soul mark burned. 

_I won’t hurt you. I promise._ Victor tried to assure it, motioning with his hand. _I only want to know what you are. Well, you're my soulmate but what else is there?_

The creature let out a strange sound and tried to bare his teeth. Unlike most humans, he had more teeth that were sharper and reminded Victor of a shark than a person. Still, he wasn’t ready to let it go. To prove that he meant no harm, he tried to caress and rub the creature’s wrist and palm. It was a way to show that the mer-jellyfish had no reason to fear him. At least, that was what Victor thought he was. He didn’t know how this creature’s body worked. He wasn’t entirely a jellyfish but he wasn’t human either. Did he ever need to come up for air? He could see that the creature did have gills so it probably stayed underwater. The sounds weren’t exactly human either. 

_What do I say to you?_ He wanted to ask. _There has to be a way for us to speak. I don’t know if you can read. I’m not even sure if you understand me._

Suddenly, the creature’s face softened when he stared into Victor’s eyes. He didn’t know what it was but he felt more at ease. Victor’s grip loosened on him but he didn’t pull away. Maybe he could sense what Victor was feeling and was starting to trust him. The lights were also glowing brighter now to show that he wasn’t scared anymore. Either that or he was trying to scare Victor with them. The latter wasn’t working because Victor didn’t fear him. He couldn’t fear the one that was his soulmate. 

_Ah, you can see that I’m not dangerous. That’s good._ Victor thought, giving the creature’s hand a squeeze. The creature shuddered but didn’t let go. He was starting to understand that Victor was trying to be friendly. He was no threat. _I wonder what I should call you. Do you have a name? If so, how do I figure that out?_

“Yuuri!”

The creature suddenly looked up, pulled away from Victor, and began to swim in the other direction. Something else continued to call out “Yuuri!” and he realized it wasn’t a fish. It was something calling for the mer-jellyfish. Yuuri. That was the perfect name for him. It seemed to roll off the tongue. He wanted to call after Yuuri but the mer-jellyfish was gone. His glowing lights faded as well, leaving Victor confused but more intrigued than ever. Now he knew where the lights were coming from and he wasn’t about to give up. He would keep coming back here just to observe Yuuri and see what kind of creature he was. He would take pictures and try to communicate with him. 

Of course, when he got back to shore and told Yuri about this, he wasn’t greeted with excitement. Instead, Yuri just gave him a look like he had gone crazy. He knew Victor had seen a million strange things in this ocean but this was by far the most bizarre. He tried make sense of the whole thing, taking in all of Victor’s words. He wanted to believe that it was something else he had come across. 

“A jellyfish?” He asked. “That’s all you’ve been chasing? A fucking jellyfish?!”

“Ah, no. He’s not any jellyfish. He’s half-human and half-jellyfish!”

Yuri wasn’t amused. “What...the...fuck? Victor, are you high?! Or are you sick? I can’t tell.” 

Victor touched his cheeks, feeling how hot they were. It wasn’t because he was ill though. He knew what he had seen. Yuuri was real. Yuuri existed. Yuuri probably knew things that no one else in the world knew. If he was real, then there must have been other mer-jellyfish out there. Something had called his name so he probably had family and friends down there. As soon as he befriended Yuuri, he would be able to see everyone else.

“Oh, you would never understand.” Victor sighed. “If you could only see him…”

“Well, take a fucking picture next time! You took the camera but you didn’t bring anything back! What the hell?! I thought you were going to get proof!”

“I couldn’t. He was just so bright and beautiful and I didn’t want to scare him. I managed to touch him though.” Victor looked down at his hand and thought about how cool Yuuri’s wrist felt. There was so much to learn about him. “I need to find a way to talk to him.”

“Mer-jellyfish.” Yuri muttered. “Yeah, you’ve lost it. Did you hit your head or dive too deep or something? Maybe there’s not enough air coming into your brain.”

Victor ignored all this and went over to his desk where all his photos of bright colorful fish were. He had some photos of jellyfish, all electric and bright under the water. He loved them but there was something special about Yuuri. He wanted to know how long Yuuri lived in the ocean and what he did down here. He wanted to know if there were other mer-creatures and why Yuuri kept glowing in that one area. What was he doing?

“What kind of jellyfish do you think he is?” Yuri asked.

“I thought you didn’t care about this.”

“I don’t but...what is he?”

“That’s what I want to find out. How am I supposed to talk to him? Does he even understand human languages?” 

“How the hell should I know? You need to figure that out.” 

He looked down at the notes he had written in the past. One thing that he loved doing was making notes of random sea creature facts and having them littered everywhere. He began looking at what he had written about jellyfish. Something he had written down was that some jellyfish glowed in the dark just like Yuuri did. That meant Yuuri probably had bioluminescent organs. He must have been glowing either to get food or get away from some predator. It was most likely the former since Victor didn’t see anything else lurking about. He also wondered if Yuuri could regenerate if he was cut in two. How much of him was human and how much of him was a jellyfish? How could a creature like this exist? 

As Yuri puttered around the office, Victor began to make a list of questions he wanted to ask Yuuri. The first issue was trying to figure out a way to communicate. Speaking wasn’t going to work but perhaps writing or drawing would. Maybe Yuuri could understand that. If Victor took his drawings with him, they could find a way of communicating. He could show Yuuri that he was no enemy. He wanted to be a friend. Looking down at the mark on his wrist, he couldn’t believe his luck. Not only did he have a soulmate, his soulmate was in the ocean. 

For now, he only kept this a secret between him and Yuri. The others began to suspect that something was going on. Christophe Giacometti, one of Victor’s friends and a fellow figure skater, had guessed that Victor now had a new boyfriend. When they met up the next day, he was ready to confront him about it. Victor’s eyes were on his mark and he kept touching it. 

“I knew it! I knew you’d find your soulmate soon!” He exclaimed, looking at the mark on Victor’s wrist. “Well, you cannot keep a secret for long. Who is it?”

“Um...his name is Yuuri.”

“Yuri? As in Plisetsky?”

“No, no, not that Yuri!” Victor suddenly realized he had two Yuris in his life. He needed to be able to differentiate between them. “This is a different Yuuri. All they share is the name but they're two different people. He’s...he’s…” It occurred to him that he didn’t know much about Yuuri. “He’s nice.”

“That’s it?” Chris was confused. “You have a new boyfriend and all you know about him is that he is nice?” 

“I didn’t talk to him that much.” Victor admitted. “In fact, I’m not sure what I can talk to him about. He’s very shy.”

“Then you have to talk to him.” Chris rolled his eyes. “You know how to talk to people. You’re talking to me just fine. Do the same with him. What’s the problem?”

It was easy for Chris to say since he had no idea what Yuuri truly was. As far as he knew, Yuuri was a guy just like anyone else. He didn’t know that Yuuri lived deep in the ocean, glowed like some jellyfish did, and probably was surrounded by other mer-folk. There was so much to explore and discover down there. Victor touched his mark and thought about the next time he would see Yuuri. He would find out more. 

He would learn who or what Yuuri truly was.

~ ~ ~ 

Yuuri kept staring at the mark on his wrist, having a hard time believing what he had come across. The mark was warm from where the human had touched him. Not only did he have a soulmate, his soulmate was a human. This was going to cause some problems because it would affect his future. He couldn’t bring this human down into the ocean with him. He’d never survive down here. Yet he needed the human with him for one reason.

“Prince Yuuri! Where are you?!”

He turned around to find his childhood friend, Yuuko, swimming up to him. She was a typical mermaid with a tail of bright red, orange, and white. She slowed down as soon as he was facing. “Oh good, there you are! Your mother and father are looking for you, your highness.”

Yuuri forced himself to smile. “You know you don’t have to call me that. I don’t feel like royalty.”

“Maybe so but you are. One day, you are going to rule these oceans with your soulmate. It won’t be long now before you are the king.”

“That’s something I’ve been thinking about. Do I really need a soulmate to rule? What if my soulmate doesn’t want that?” He asked, staring at the mark on his wrist. His soulmate was real and living on the land. His soulmate could swim here but he couldn’t stay. “What if they decide that they aren’t meant for royalty? I'm scared of ruling and I don't want to drag anyone else into it.”

“Oh, Yuuri.” Yuuko sighed. “I know you’re scared because you haven’t found your soulmate yet. But that is the rule here, remember? You and your soulmate both need to rule these oceans since they are so vast. You cannot do it alone.”

“I’m sure I could manage. We can change the rules! In fact, I think I need to change some of these laws were have when I am king.” Yuuri nodded. “Let’s say that my soulmate isn’t a merman. What if they were, for example, a human?”

Yuuko’s eyes darkened at that. “That can’t be. A human would never survive here. Besides, you know how dangerous some of them are. I’m sure there’s a lucky mermaid or merman who is your soulmate. Now come with me. Your mother and father have something to tell you.”

He had feared this was going to happen. There was no way anyone was going to accept this human diver as his soulmate. It didn’t matter if he had the same mark on his wrist or not. The human couldn’t rule the oceans with him. How were they supposed to do anything together? He was already nervous about being the ruler of the seas. It was his duty to take care of the people in his kingdom but he also wanted more. He wanted to go beyond the seas and live a normal life. He was hoping his soulmate could help him do that.

Now that he had a human for a soulmate, things would be very different. Either the human had to live down here or he had to move to the land. He didn’t like these options and he needed a new plan. Still, that was further down the line. He had a few other things to take care of first and the biggest ones were his parents. Both King Toshiya and Queen Hiroko were looking forward to the day of Yuuri’s coronation. Even though Yuuri himself was nervous about this, they had prepared him for it. They knew he would make a fine king. All he needed was a mate to complete everything.

Yuuri opted to keep the human a secret from everyone for now. As long as that human didn’t try to follow him, he would be fine. He was soon led to his home, a large castle hidden deep in the ocean. It was the biggest building down here yet well hidden. This was his home. It was where he was going to stay for as long as he lived. It was so majestic and tall that nothing could take it down. When he went inside, all the servants greeted. They bowed down and wanted to know how they could make things even more comfortable. 

“Welcome home, your majesty.”

“Shall I get you anything, your majesty?”

“How was your day, your majesty?”

It was a little overwhelming to go down this big halls and be greeted by everyone. They all thought of him as someone important even though he didn’t feel that way. He never wanted anyone to treat him as something special. He just wanted to be a normal merman even though he knew he wasn’t. He didn’t have a tail like a merman. Instead, he had a body that was better suited for jellyfish. He was colorful like them in pink and yellow and he glowed but he didn’t feel regal. He just felt so small in such a big kingdom. 

He was led into the throne room where his mother was waiting. Like him, she was also half-jellyfish and glowed whenever she was close to danger or hunting something. Even with her back turned, she still looked more like royalty than he did. When she turned around, he suddenly felt so small and inadequate to be a leader. He was always sure that his older sister, Mari, was more suited to rule the seas. However, Mari wanted to explore and go places. She wanted to travel all around the seas without having to rule them. She was lucky in that sense. She wasn’t going to be tied down to anything and could do whatever she wanted. Yuuri didn’t have that luxury. Now that he was older, it was almost time for him to be king. They were just waiting for the right day. 

Yuuri took a deep breath before speaking up. “Did you want to see me?” 

“Oh Yuuri, welcome home! We have something to tell you and it’s urgent!” His mother exclaimed, swimming over to him. “I thought something might have happened to you.” 

“I’m fine. I was just swimming around.” Yuuri said. “Is something wrong?”

“It might be. Humans have been spotted around the area and everyone is taking precautions. I thought one of them might have gotten to you as well!”

“Well, they didn’t. I’ll be careful though.” Yuuri stared down at the mark on his wrist and tried to hide it. This certainly wasn’t the time to tell his mother about his soulmate. “Maybe these humans will go away when they don't find what they want.”

“I want to believe that but I think they’re after something. They keep coming down here and I don’t think they’ll leave until they find it. If you see any humans, steer clear of them. They might hurt you and we can’t have that. Not before you find your soulmate.”

There it was again, talk of soulmates. “Do I need a soulmate to rule the oceans?”

His mother’s face twitched. “Naturally. It has been the tradition for years now. You cannot cover every corner of these oceans on your own, Yuuri. Everyone has a soulmate and yours is still out there. You will find them soon and then all of this will be yours. You will be very happy when you have them in your life. I can’t wait to meet that lucky merman or mermaid who will help you rule. More importantly, they will be the one you spend your entire life with.”

“I understand but...it’s going to be hard to find them.”

“It will be but they’re out there.” She promised him. “You just have to be patient. I know you will make a fine king one day and you will make your soulmate very happy. Together, you will be a force to be reckoned with.” 

“What if I want to change traditions?” He suggested. “What if my soulmate doesn’t want to rule the seas? What if the idea of ruling the kingdom scares them? They should be allowed a choice of what they want to do.”

She paused and he could tell that she was thinking about it. “Well, you can decide that when you actually find your soulmate. For now, just steer clear of any humans. Even if you do see one, just turn away from them. Watch from a distance and don’t make a sound. Is that clear? Don't get too close to anyone.”

He nodded, feeling more miserable and conflicted than ever. Now he couldn’t tell his mother anything. He couldn’t talk about the fact that the soulmate was one of those human divers. How were they supposed to live together? No merman or mermaid would ever accept this human as a future ruler. If anything, they would rip the human to shreds and feed him to the sharks. So he would have to keep his soulmate away at all costs. He looked down at the mark on his wrist and felt how warm it was. He knew he had to see the human again. They had to make a connection. They had to learn to trust each other. 

And somehow, someway, this human was the one he needed in his life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yell at me in comments or at my tumblr: https://fallsintograce.tumblr.com/ 
> 
> The next update probably won't be till the end of this month or early Feb. That goes for pretty much all my stories.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A possible truth revealed?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for taking too long with this next chapter and the shortness of it. This was the fic I was having the hardest time getting back into. I didn't want to let it linger much longer since it's still Mermay and it's the only mer fic that needs an update! Took a bit of a twisted edge now but things will end happily. I can promise you that!

When Yuuri was young, he had been told many times to keep his distance from humans and everything they had created. The humans might have looked pretty but they were anything but kind. As years went on, he began to understand why he was being told this. He had seen so many fish and sea creatures getting caught in human nets. He also saw many of them killed for various reasons. For years, he tried saving as many as he could and sometimes he succeeded. Other times, he came too late and they were already gone. A lot of babies had been orphaned because their mothers and fathers were killed. It was just too painful to deal with.

Going through this year after year had taken its toll on Yuuri. He was growing to hate these humans for what they had done and he wanted revenge. As he grew older, the lights around him got brighter and he came up with a horrible idea. It wasn’t something he really wanted to do but his anger was growing. He didn’t like what he saw and he wanted to make people pay. He had never been violent before. Now he was enraged and his lights were glowing all around him. He knew people would be drawn to them. Like the sirens of the past, he knew he had a power to pull anyone into the ocean. Sirens used their voices. He would use his lights.

It worked, of course. Those dancing lights drew in many fisherman and sailors. They would closer and closer until they toppled into the ocean. Once there, Yuuri pulled them in and left them to die under the waves. There were times where he did feel bad about it and let them go if they pleaded enough. Other times, he showed no mercy. Years passed and he became more bold. He went after anyone he felt was not respecting the ocean. He had seen what they could do and he wanted them to pay.

Down below, most of the merfolk were baffled by the causes of all these drownings and shipwrecks. They originally thought it was several sirens luring people to their demise because that had happened before. The sirens were known for doing that but it had been years ago. Since then, they had made their peace with people and promised not to lure anyone else to their death. They agreed to share the ocean with others as long everyone respected it and everything that lived below it. 

Of course, that was the deal that sirens made with people. He didn’t make any such deal with them. He still saw people breaking their promises and being careless with their actions. So he had to give them a few reminders. Sometimes they could be tiny things such as causing a boat to rock or sending tiny waves in their direction. That was the only warning they got. If it continued, he took it to another level. He made sure they knew who the ocean truly belonged to.

The one thing he had never hoped for was a soulmate that was a human being. He wanted people to fear him. He wanted to warn them that they couldn’t cross certain lines and they were constantly crossing them. He had made himself a threat to them. He was the ‘firefish’ who saved through the waves and brought men down into the depths of the waters. The ‘firefish’ was a monster who led people to Hell. No one had lived long enough to see it.

Not until Victor. 

Victor. That name was still on his mind. He heard it once and it was all he needed to know. Yuuri kept thinking about this soulmate of his and whether or not it was a good idea to pursue this human. Up close, he had been friendly but that was nothing new. He was friendly to all the humans in the beginning. It was how he got them in his trap and that was what he wanted to do with Victor. 

So why couldn’t I do it this time? Is it because he’s my soulmate? Yuuri wondered, watching as more fish swam around him. They had nothing to fear because he would never hurt them. All the same, they also knew of his reputation. They didn’t try to get on his bad side even if they had nothing to worry about. 

Logic was saying to do to Victor what he did to everyone else. However, there was something about this human that was different. No matter what his true intentions were, there was no way he could try to hurt him. He wanted to get to know his soulmate a little better. Living together would be a little more difficult but there had to be a way around it. He couldn’t visit Victor on land but Victor could visit him in the sea. The problem was that he could only stay for a while. 

The best one to give Yuuri advice about soulmates was his one of his childhood friend, Takeshi, who was also Yuuko’s husband. He had a tail that was like a lionfish and was busy raising a family with three young mermaids, all with different colored tails. He had met his Yuuko years ago, learned she was his soulmate, and had married her shortly after. However, that was a different situation because his wife was also a mermaid. She wasn’t human and she could spend eternity with him. Both Yuuko and Takeshi knew how to get soulmates to fall in love. 

Right now, he had gone to see them to ask questions, leaving out the crucial part that Victor was human. Yuuko was busy trying to take care of her daughters so he had to turn to Takenshi. What he needed to do first was woo Victor and not in the way that he wooed sailors and other people on shore. This time, he didn’t want to drown a human.

“I can see why he would be scared. He’s heard of what you can do.” Takeshi began. He was one of the few merfolk who knew of Yuuri’s dangerous lights and all the deaths he had caused. She was never able to stop him but she could calm him down. “However, if you really want his attention, use your lights in a good way. That’s what Yuuko suggested. Be gentle with him. Try to talk to him. If you show your kind side, he will fall for you too.”

That was all very good but Yuuri remained uncertain. “What if it doesn’t work this time? What if he still fears me after I show my kind side?”

“Well, try a different approach. Instead of attacking humans, leave them alone for a while. I know they cause a lot of problems in the ocean but stay away. Let one of the sirens take care of them. You can always keep them away from the sea. If he sees you have self-control, it might make him relax a little bit. Then he might approach you. Just for a little while, leave the humans alone. You’ll see that things will change.”

This wasn’t what he wanted to do but Yuuri decided that he would give it a try. If it meant he could get closer to Victor and learn more about him, he could keep to himself. He wouldn’t do anything to these humans. He would let them roam about and have fun. Victor needed to see that he was a good merman. 

He was in a better mood when he left Takeshi and ran into another merman, Minami, who had come with news about humans on shore. Minami rattled off everything that was going on from the weather to how the humans were treating the water. He knew of their illegal activies as well and did his best to stop them. Unfortunately, he wasn’t as powerful as some merfolk and wasn’t able to save everyone and everything. For his sake, Yuuri suggested that Minami stay in the background and report back everything he could find.

“The humans are quiet today, Your Majesty.” He began. “The weather is calm but no one is around. No one is disrupting anything. I guess the last incident has them keeping clear of the shore.”

“That’s good.” Yuuri nodded. “How about any humans by the name of Victor? Have you heard about them?”

Minami was confused. “I don’t know any humans by that name, Your Highness. Then again, I don’t really try to find out their names.”

“All right, have you seen any silver-haired men around?” As far as Yuuri knew, Victor was the only one he had seen with that hair color as of recently. 

“Not today. I will keep searching, Your Highness. If I do find him, should I bring him to you?”

“No, just come straight to me and tell me where he is. I will go to him.” Yuuri suggested. “Thank you for your report, Minami. Remember, if you see the human, do not attack him. Come straight to me.”

“Understood, Your Majesty. I will watch out for him.” 

Yuuri looked down at his soulmark again and felt it burning. He and Victor needed to meet again. Mayeb this time, he needed to go to the shore. He had to show Victor that he was gentle and willing to try and make this work. 

He had to make it work.

~ ~ ~

Yuri was bored this afternoon because Victor had spent all day reading all kinds of books and newspaper articles. He had come here hoping to hear about some cool discovery or maybe a story about someone getting eaten by sharks. Instead, Victor was in his office with no desire to go to the water today. There had been a storm last night but clear skies were around today. There was no reason for him to stay indoors.

“Are you ever going to leave your desk?” Yuri asked. “I thought you’d be chasing after your half-jellyfish person now.”

Victor barely heard him as he flipped a page on the last disaster at sea. Apparently, many fishermen had drowned because they had seen some strange lights dancing around in the water. A lot of people were speculating that it might been aliens or some dangerous sea creature in the ocean. No one had any clear photographic evidence, just a lot of blurry photos. 

“I don’t know how I can find him again.” He murmured. “I’ve been looking for something about the lights but I just find stories about disasters.”

“Disasters, huh? Well, that’s interesting.” Yuri looked over his shoulder. “Oh, I heard about that. People are drowning because they keep seeing lights. A lot of them said it was aliens.”

“No, it’s not aliens.” Victor shook his head. “It’s something else.”

A horrible feeling of dread came over him. He didn’t want to believe that his beautiful mer-jellyfish was the one behind all this. The mer-jellyfish looked so sweet in those waters. There was no way he could be the one causing all of this. He didn’t seem to be the type who would try to capsize boats and send men to their watery graves. That could possibly make sense if he was a siren. A siren would be cruel enough to do this. Not a mer-jellyfish. 

He thought about his soulmark as it was burning against his skin. The more he thought about it, the more he dreaded it. The last thing he wanted for a soulmate was a monster. It didn’t matter how innocent he looked; if he was killing people like this, then he was a threat to people. Victor couldn’t be soulmates with someone like that. Granted, it was not impossible for something like this to happen. There were people out there who ended up with less than ideal soulmates. He just didn't think he would be one of those people. He still had a hard time wrapping his mind around it.

“You don’t think he would do this, do you?” He asked.

“How should I know? I never saw him killing anyone.” Yuri shrugged. “You were excited about seeing him last time.”

“That was before I read up on this. I know people are saying it’s aliens but that can’t be it. I saw the pictures of the lights and they are similar. No one knows what’s causing this but…” Victor looked at a picture of the lights. He had seen them before, blinking on and off. It couldn’t be it. He didn’t to think that it was his mer-jellyfish doing this. 

“Should I try to find him and ask him about it?” He asked.

“What are you asking me for? If this means something to you, you should do it.” Yuri pointed out. “You know what Georgi usually says. Love cannot be stopped. If he means something to you, you’ll find out everything you want.” He rolled his eyes. “Of course, that’s all coming from Georgi. He has weird ideas about love and soulmates.”

Victor nodded. Georgi might have had strange ideas about love and relationships but he also had a point. If he wanted the truth, he would have to find it out on his own. He’d have to ask if all of this was true. He had to know whether or not he was dealing with a monster. The more he thought about it, the more his soulmark was burning. If this was true, what was he going to do about it? He couldn’t stop something more powerful than him. 

“You are right. I need to find him.” He decided, getting up from his chair. “I have to know.”

“Finally! I was getting bored watching you!” Yuri threw his hands up in the air. “Can we go now?”

“Yes, we can go now. I’ll try to find him and ask him about this.” Victor decided, gingerly touching his soulmark. It went from feeling hot to cold within seconds. He didn’t know what was causing that feeling but he had to find out. “Be outside within ten minutes and get everyone together. I have a mer-jellyfish to find.”

It was a scary thought but he needed to go into the water. He needed to see his soulmate again. Just thinking of him was making that soulmark itch and burn constantly. He had a million questions to ask and he needed to be certain that this wasn’t an evil sea monster drawing people into the water.

And then, maybe then, they would know what to do next.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come scream at me at tumblr: fallsintograce

**Author's Note:**

> Lemme know what you think via comments or follow me on tumblr: [fallsintograce](https://fallsintograce.tumblr.com) . 
> 
> All the other characters will come in soon and you'll see what they are. Tags might change but the warnings will stay the same.


End file.
